The Pretender
by randomle26
Summary: He smirked and put his hands in his pockets. Raven had to admit he looked like a cute schoolboy when he did that. "Just wondering why the Punk Princess decided to run for class president. I thought it was too mainstream for your liking." [AU One Shot]


**AN: Here's another AU one shot. I'm still deciding on story ideas but for now, I'll just work on one shots**

**Song Used: THE PRETENDER by Cherri Bomb**

* * *

_What if I say I'm not like the others?  
What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?  
You're the pretender  
What if I say I will never surrender?_

* * *

Raven banged her head repeatedly on the lunch table, not caring if her black eye shadow and mascara was spearing against the table.

"Raven, you keep that up and you're going to start bleeding on the fucking table," Roy pointed out sarcastically.

She glared at the redhead, "Shut up."

Jennifer- aka Jinx- put her hand comfortingly on Raven's shoulder, "Why are you opposing it so much?"

"Because it's a stupid idea!"

Toni shook her head, "It's not _that_ stupid." Raven glared at the other goth, "How can you say that?" "What about this is so stupid?" asked Wally. Raven started throwing her hands in the air for emphasis.

"You want me- scary, pariah Raven- to run for _class president_. Against the popular, shitty Richard Grayson!"

Across the lunchroom, at the jock/popular table was (in their opinion) the most cocky, the most stuck-up, and the most obnoxious people in the world. Raven swore to herself that they were just the replicas of any jocks in any cheesy/overrated high school movie.

While Raven ran her own group of misfits (the quirky Jinx, the happily goth Toni, the too-cool Roy, and the weird Wally), Richard might as well have been the king of the entire student body. He only had five people in his social circle that he deemed worthy to hang out with him (Terra, Kori, Garth, Victor, and Garfield).

Raven didn't per se hate Richard Grayson, she just didn't entirely like nor respected him. He was a real _dick_- pun intended.

"I don't get why you want me to do it anyway," Raven repeated. Jinx added, "Because we all lost on the rock, paper, scissors tournament."

Raven rolled her eyes, "That doesn't answer my question." Roy smirked and put his feet on the table, "Because you're super badass and you scare everybody."

She pursed her lips, "As complimenting as that is, it still doesn't answer my question."

"Well," Wally interjected, feeling brave, "Dick Grayson over there thinks that as a group of outsiders, we're no better then him and his prissy cheerleaders. We plan to prove him wrong. By you winning elections."

"World Domination!" Toni mocked. Raven's head fell back and she closed her eyes, "Who cares what Grayson thinks?"

"He also called you a heartless bitch in Pre-Cal yesterday," Jinx added, knowing Raven would get a little ticked off. Her friends were amateurs the way to get Raven to do something was to make her emotional one insult at a time.

Raven's face remained neutral, "I don't care." It really wasn't the first time someone called her a bitch or heartless.

"He said you're car was like gothic trash," Jinx pestered. Raven smirked at the pink-haired girl, "Then I fucking pity him. He couldn't come up with a better insult then that?"

Toni knew the exact thing to say to tick Raven off, "He said you were a blood-sucking vampire that was desperate to have sex with him." The sad thing was, everything they said was an _exact_ repeat of what the Great Grayson said.

And it seemed to work.

Raven's eyes went wide and her fingers twitched. "Son of a bitch," she shouted.

* * *

Despite the fact that Raven still didn't want to do this she felt some pride for making a difference. All of the other outcasts were looking up to Raven as some sort of symbol. Sure she preferred it when they were scared of her, but it was nice that they kept asking her advice…even though it was only about useless crap she could really care less about.

"Raven what do you think of these posters I made you?"

Raven turned her face to Karen, another person that supported her campaign. The poster was a photo-shopped image of Raven playing her guitar with Roy and Toni at Homecoming night. It was one of Raven's favorite nights because they had jumped out of the school's parade float, did a cover on a Marilyn Manson song, and got some cheerleaders to run screaming.

Raven smirked at the girl, "I like them. Good work." Karen beamed back, "It's a good thing you're running, girl." Raven raised one eyebrow, "Why's that?" She laughed, "Well for one thing, woman empowerment! And another, you're showing you don't have to be popular to still run things."

Politely, Raven nodded, "Well thank Wally and Jinx, they forced me into this thing."

"I thought Libitina Jr. didn't do things she didn't want to."

Raven rolled her eyes at the familiar voice. Bidding her goodbye to Karen, Raven turned around face-to-face with Richard Grayson.

"I wouldn't think you knew Libitina. And now that we got our pleasantries out of the way, what do you want, Abercrombie?" Raven asked with her arms crossed over her chest.

He smirked and put his hands in his pockets. Raven had to admit he looked like a cute schoolboy when he did that.

"Just wondering why the Punk Princess decided to run for class president. I thought it was too mainstream for your liking."

"It is…but as Karen said, female empowerment."

Richard raised an eyebrow knowingly, "That's the _only_ reason?" Raven shrugged, "No. My friends don't like the way you talk about them. Personally, I don't care what _you_ think, it just shows how low you are. But they don't like the way you think they're incompetent compared to you."

"Never said I thought that," Richard defended, although he would think something similar when he was really bored.

"You don't have to. You're pretty little face just shows it."

Richard smirked, "You think I have a pretty face?" Raven's eyes widened and a light blush painted her cheeks. Richard liked seeing Raven blushing, it showed that even she could look…normal.

"Very funny, Boy Wonder," Raven said, calling on the nickname he was given by the entire girl population of the student body.

"Not as funny as you, thinking you'll _win_." Richard was always _very_ competitive.

Raven tilted her head knowingly, "The fact that you're standing here in front of me, talking to me, implies that you're _threatened_ by me. Is the little Boy Blunder afraid of the little goth girl?" Now it was Richard's turn to blush.

Richard was almost nose-to-nose with her, "You're going down, Roth." Raven smirked, "You mean like all your other _girlfriends_? Hate to break it to you, Boy Blunder, but I don't _submit_ that easy just because you have nice hair or a nice face."

Raven proceeded to walk off, stomping her combat boots, when she heard him call, "So you think I have nice hair too?"

Raven growled and turned around to him, raising the middle finger on her right hand. He gave her his famous crooked smile, "It's on, bitch."

Of course it was. He just made one mistake.

Raven was _nobody's_ bitch.

* * *

"We're not going to let that group of big-headed preps win!" Toni announced the next day when Raven told her about her encounter with Gotham Academy's prince.

"How do you expect us to do that?" asked Roy. Jinx smirked devilishly (making Wally and Roy slightly terrified), "We play _dirty_."

* * *

"Hey Terra," greeted Wally the next day.

Terra glared at the freckled redhead, "What the hell do you want, West?"

He put his hands up defensively, "I just thought I could help you open your locker." Wally proceeded to unlock it.

She put her hands defiantly on her hips, "No. I'm Richard's campaign manager. You're trying to get secrets for your precious leader. So get your greasy hands off my locker."

Wally removed his hands, "Okay fine. If you insist."

Terra nodded proudly and continued to open her locker. Oh now she knew she should've let West open her locker.

Next thing she knew, she and all of the things in her locker, we're covered in what she thought was jelly. In fact, she remembered this scene specifically when she watched _I Am Number 4_.

And of course, everyone on the campus heard Terra's shriek in anger.

* * *

"They're playing dirty. Those sons of bitches!" Garfield pointed out obviously.

Kori tapped her chin, "What should we do? We can't let those misfits win!"

"It was a declaration of war," Terra added, trying to scrub the jelly off her blouse.

"Then we'll give them war," Garth concluded.

Victor sometimes wondered how he was friends with these people.

* * *

"Hi, Roy," cooed Kori.

Roy stared funnily at the girl, "What do you want?" She gave him a puppy-eyed look, "I can't just say hi?"

"Hell no."

She put her hands on her hips, "I just want to know how Raven's doing in her campaign against Richard."

"Well, too fucking back, Kori. I'm not telling anything."

Kori smirked when Roy turned his back to her. And Roy's eyes begin to widen when he heard her screaming:

"God Roy, don't cry. I'm sorry I won't have sex with you, I just don't like you like that. And god you're begging is so annoying. Too bad you're not as _big_ as you're ego!"

That bitch.

* * *

These series of 7th grade pranks went on for weeks until the actual election. What many people found odd was the fact that Raven and Richard weren't actually involved in the pranks.

People said that Richard was too _holy_ or too _moral_ to actually get his hands dirty like that.

People said that Raven was too _bored_ or too _unimpressed_ by the pranks that she said it was below her league.

But as leaders of their own cliques, it was up to them to put an end to this childish behavior.

And everyone hoped/quailed for a fight when they saw Richard and Raven meeting in the parking lot.

"Tell you're friends to back the fuck off," Richard commanded.

Raven crossed her arms over her chest, "I'm not your slave, you _dick._ And if you want someone to back off, then get your band of followers to do it."

"Our pranks aren't _subtle_ like yours," said Richard sarcastically.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"West jamming Terra. Garfield being covered in Toni's meat sauce! Roy cutting some of Kori's hair and Jinx sun burning Garth- and I'm not even going to ask how they did that. Do you have any idea how much complaining I have to hear from them?"

"Cry me a fucking river," Raven scoffed, "I call that quality pranks, Grayson. We hit you right where it hurts: your _appearance_. And how _subtle_ were you guys?"

"What the hell does that mean?" repeated Richard.

"Kori and Garth making fun of Roy and Toni's sexuality. Victor- who I know didn't think of this on his own- paying my Baran to publicly state the reasons he wouldn't go out with her. Or Garfield and Terra photo-shopping Wally's face onto the model of a diet pill…the 'before' version."

Raven walked up to Richard, "Do _not_ think I'm okay with this at all. I will admit my friends had went a little far with the excessive use of chemicals and foods, but we _never_ used strategies like you guys did. And it's not flying past me."

"You're not that holy, Roth. Their clothes- and hair and skin- are damaged."

Raven was flabbergasted by his defense. "So what? Get the fuck over it because we didn't verbally abuse you. We may seem badass and emotionless to you guys, but even a few insults can _really_ mess a person up. Of course you wouldn't understand it because everybody 'loves' you guys."

Richard eyes widened at the protectiveness from Raven. It was…endearing to him.

She huffed, "I apologize for my friends' abuse of your clothes, but that's all I'm apologizing for."

"And not their hair?" Richard joked, and he could tell Raven was trying to hide a smile. He said with a sigh, "I will apologize on their behalf as well. You're right though. It doesn't matter if it affected them or not, it was still pretty mean."

Raven smirked, "Everyone's scared of us for a reason, Richard. We're tough."

The two stood in silence for what felt like hours and was only minutes.

"It's only going to end when _one_ of us wins that election," Richard stated obviously.

Raven pursed her lips, "Are you giving up?" Richard chuckled, "Very naïve of you Raven. I _never_ give up."

She rolled her eyes, "Well we have to figure out a way to settle this. I'm tired of hearing your friends' scream because a little meat sauce got into their hair."

"If he wasn't a strict vegan, I would agree. But you're right about this ending. And they're not going to stop until one of the groups is _completely_ humiliated."

Raven tapped her chin, contemplating what he was saying.

She turned back to him, "How about- to settle this once and for all- we make a bet?" He raised an eyebrow, "Enlighten me."

Raven put her fingerless gloved hands on her hips, "A bet. Loser has to do whatever the winner asks. It's a simple bet and the humiliation won't be as brutal. No clothes will be harmed in the making."

Richard smirked at her sarcastic-ness, "I like the way you think, Roth." He stuck his hand out, "May the best man win?"

She smirked at the Boy Wonder and took his hand, "Yes, may the best _woman_ win."

* * *

"You nervous, Rae?" asked Roy.

Raven shook her head, "Nope. It's not like it's the end of the world."

"You sure you don't want to change?" hedged Jinx.

Raven wasn't dressed in a big suit like Richard was. She was just wearing a Black Veil Brides tank top on top of a white, short-sleeved shirt, a plaid (red and black) skirt, purple and black stockings, and Doc Martins. Unfortunately, Jinx couldn't get Raven to take off the fishnet arm warmers either.

She glared at the pink-headed girl, "I'm not changing just to win a shitty election."

Jinx smirked, "And that's why you'll make a great Class President."

Roy put his arm around Raven and kissed the top of her head, "No matter if you win or not, we're glad you're trying."

Toni grabbed Roy's hand, "C'mon, Hallmark Card, we have to go get our seats."

With that, Raven's friends left. She was glad to see them smiling.

Richard's friends' pranks thankfully didn't impact them as much as they intended, but it still did dent them. Raven didn't like seeing them in that whole self-conscious mode because they were her friends and they were beautiful in their own way.

"Okay Gotham Academy," boomed Principal Kent, "Let's bring out our candidates: Raven Roth and Richard Grayson!"

With a sigh, Raven stepped out onto the stage. She and Richard shared a quick glance before taking their place on separate podiums.

"Each candidate will present a speech on why they are the best choice for their student body. Miss Roth, you will start," said Principal Kent before the audience applauded and he left the stage.

When the spotlight hit her, and she cringed, she now understood why everyone called her a vampire. It was freaking burning! Raven gripped the sides of the podium to keep herself stable, looking down at the notecards Wally had given her. They were blurring and Raven decided to ignore it.

She'd been on stage before. And she didn't really care if she won or not. She was doing this for her friends. And her friends alone.

With a deep breath, she looked to where Wally, Jinx, Toni, and Roy were sitting. Raven chuckled into the microphone, "I know that many of you are surprised I was even running. I'm that scary girl who would rather stick a steak knife into a can for fun then do _anything_ school related."

The audience laughed at the last statement.

Raven took another deep breath and decided that the library poster she hated was right: honesty was the best policy.

"I didn't really want to run for president, and I don't care if I win or not. I was just doing this because my friends asked me to. And I love them, so I'm doing this to make them happy. But…as I saw how influenced people were getting because _I _ was running, I began feeling differently."

Raven stared straight at the audience this time, "I saw that some people were supporting my feminism justice, girl power right?" Some of the girls hollered in approval. And Raven continued, "But others saw this as a chance for other _outcasts_ to speak out. And I guess that's what I am. An outcast that was never afraid of speaking her mind. This time, I'm speaking out for all the outcasts."

With Raven's final sentence, everyone clapped in approval. It was a cheesy motivational speech on Raven's part, but she didn't really care.

The spotlight then moved off Raven to her opponent. Richard looked oddly…nervous?

"I first would like to say that I actually do want to be class president, unlike my opponent. I really…"

Richard's voice trailed off when he looked at Raven. He seemed to stare at her, almost as if he was studying her. Raven found that confusing.

"Anyway, I could give you a list of…um…I…I can't do this." Everyone gasped in shock (except Raven, it was a little too dramatic for her).

He turned to Raven, "I love you Raven, and I can't fight against you. Why waste your time fighting against the people you cherish when you can fight beside them?"

Raven's eyes couldn't go wider at Richard's statement. He walked up to her with a microphone and said, "I am in love with you Raven. Can you please tell me if I even have a _shot_ of being with you?"

Raven nervously looked between Richard and her friends. She had to hand it to him, he was very good at stealing the moment.

Raven let out a sigh, "Are you being serious?"

Richard looked confused, "Why wouldn't I be?" She closed her eyes and grit her teeth, "Are you seriously doing this _right _now?"

He nodded, "Will you please answer me?"

"No," Raven said, "You…I…I can't…I can't believe this." Not caring about what would happen next, Raven stomped off the stage in retreat.

* * *

Principal Kent announced that Richard Grayson won the election. He beat her 50-38 votes. But that's not what aggravated Raven.

She couldn't figure it out. The outburst on stage, in front of the student body, was completely uncharacteristic. It was almost planned.

She wondered…

"Aren't you going to congratulate me?"

She turned to Richard (why was he always greeting her like that?). She crossed her arms over her chest, "Why would I? I lost, and that means I have to do whatever you say. Who knows what kinda pervert you are." He chuckled and walked closer to her.

She growled and put her books away. He put his hand underneath her chin, "Why the long face?"

"I just don't get it," she confessed, "That whole outburst sounded _nothing _like you. You seriously have the _worst_ sense of timing."

Richard smirked, "I call that _perfect timing_."

Just staring at his laughing eyes and his perfect smirk, the wheels begin to turn in her head. Her eyes widened in realization.

And she was mentally hitting herself for being so stupid.

"You planned it."

He shrugged modestly, "Well normally guys do plan confessing at a specific-"

"Piss off, Grayson. And tell me the truth."

He chuckled at Raven, "Okay, fine. You're right I planned it. It was my _big_ strategy."

"You knew I was going to reject you," Raven commented, putting the pieces together, "You wanted _sympathy_ votes."

Richard leaned in towards Raven's face, "Not only do I _never_ give up, I _never_ lose."

"You jackass," she exclaimed and hit him on his shoulder.

Richard continued to laugh, "That's _winning_ jackass. You owe me."

She growled, "So everything on stage, you being in love with me, was a lie?"

Richard sighed and…

…wrapped his arms around Raven's waist. Pulling her closer. What the fuck?

"It wasn't a lie. Not all of it."

She stared at the Boy Wonder. Was he for real?

"How do I know you're not lying?" He shrugged, "You don't. But even you aren't afraid of taking risks."

"So…you have feelings for me?" asked a confused Raven.

He smiled, "I'm not in love with you…not yet at least. But I'm _very_ attracted to you Raven. What can I say? You make a guy feel like jelly whenever you wear those sexy corsets or those plaid skirts."

Raven stared shocked at him, "So Gotham's prince has fallen for me, the Ice Queen?"

"How many times do I have to say it, Raven? You're smart, you're sexy, you're beautiful, and you're impressively badass. I was bound to be one of many guys to be attracted to you."

She rubbed his arms- the arms that were still around her- and sighed, "You're quite an actor Richard."

He kissed her nose lightly, ignoring that comment, "Now because I won our bet…I get to decide what you have to do."

"Good, you obviously listen," Raven stated sarcastically.

He continued to ignore her sarcasm, "As a consequence of you losing, you…must go out on a date with me."

She raised an eyebrow, "That's very unoriginal, Richard."

He smirked knowingly, "Would you prefer I get more creative?"

"Oh god no," Raven said, "So that's all I have to do?"

"You could also tell all your friends what a sex god I am," he said nonchalantly.

She shook her head, "Okay no, try again."

"You could kiss me, right her in the hallway, where everyone can see us."

Richard leaned his head in, but was stopped when Raven put her finger on his lips, "You'll pick me up at 8." With that, Raven began to put her stuff in her bag and walk away.

He laughed, "Don't pretend that you're not excited!"

She turned around and called to him, "Who said I'm pretending?"

"Only one of us can _really _pretend Raven."

"Good point, President Boy Blunder!"

* * *

**I know the ending was really cheesy, but I hope you liked it.**

**Please Read and Review this one.**


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